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Suriname River near Klaas Kreek
This is the Suriname River near the village of Klaas Kreek. It is a wide and slow-flowing river here with sandy beaches. There were a lot of aquatic plants - Tonina sp.
Jeff caught some Cichla ocellaris here - the first ones of the trip. The water here had a pH of 6.4; hardness of only 11 ppm and the temp was 29 C (84 F).
Geophagus brokopondo was previously known only from the artificial lake crated by the dam at Brokopondo. Odd, methinks, that a fish could be endemic to an artificial lake. However, the identity of this species was confirmed by Hernan Lopez Fernandez as G. brokopondo. So brokopondo is, after all, found in Suriname River outside of lake. The fish is quite common in Suriname River once you get away from the coast. A few months after bringing it home, a severe Ick infestation, unfortunately, killed them all. I find most of the Surinamese cichlids to be quite susceptible to Ick - temperature changes that would not affect most cichlids appear to bring on Ick in these fish.
Seining was the best way to catch fish here. Spencer and I seined in a lot of Guianacara owroewefi and Geophagus brokopondo. Both species were fairly common along the sandy shores and could easily be spotted foraging. Species caught at Suriname River near Klaas Kreek Village:
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